IceHogs News

In conjunction with the National Hockey League, the Chicago Blackhawks announced their 2011-12 regular-season schedule on Tuesday. The organization’s 84th regular-season begins when the club faces off against the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Arena on Friday, Oct. 7.

The Blackhawks will open their 41-game home slate at the United Center when they welcome the Stars on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 7:30 P.M. Twenty-two of the club’s 41 contests in Chicago take place on weekends, which includes four Saturdays, 11 Sundays and seven Fridays. The team will host the Boston Bruins at the United Center on Saturday, Oct. 15 in a meeting of the last two Stanley Cup champions.

Five of Chicago’s first eight games (Oct. 7 to 25) and seven of their first 11 (Oct. 7 to Oct. 31) will be played on home ice. The Blackhawks’ will skate in a season-high five-game home stand from Dec. 21 to Jan. 2. Chicago’s two longest road trips of the season include a six-game swing from Nov. 16 to 26 and a nine-contest run from Jan. 31 to Feb. 18. The nine-game trip is the organization’s longest stretch of road tilts since 1994.

The Blackhawks will match up against each of their four Central Division rivals six times (Columbus, Detroit, Nashville and St. Louis) and their remaining 10 Western Conference foes four times apiece. Chicago will play each team in the Eastern Conference at least one time in 2011-12.

For the fourth consecutive season, all 82 Chicago Blackhawks games will be televised in HD on Comcast SportsNet Chicago and WGN-TV, the official television broadcasting partners of the Blackhawks, with Pat Foley and Eddie Olczyk providing the call. Every game in 2011-12 can also be heard on WGN Radio 720, with John Wiedeman and Troy Murray calling the action. The complete television broadcast schedule will be released at a later date.

Information about group tickets for regular-season games is available by calling (312) 455-7000. Tickets for single games will be available at a date to be determined.